Pilot program gives students experience in biomedical sciences

Gulliver Academy Middle School has been selected for a national biomedical sciences pilot program in South Florida. The new program, developed by Project Lead The Way (PLTW), is a middle school curriculum that will be launched in the spring of 2013.

PLTW, the nation’s leading non-profit provider of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) curriculum and professional development to middle schools and high schools, made the announcement earlier this year. It joins more than 5,200 PLTW programs in more than 4,200 schools nationwide.

The new unit, known as Medical Detectives, will be part of the middle school’s Gateway to Technology program. In this program, students will explore the biomedical sciences through hands-on projects and labs that require them to solve a variety of medical mysteries.

“We are thrilled to be included in this new pilot program and are very proud that Ms. Yolanda Baquet has been selected from thousands of educators to implement the program,” said John Krutulis, Gulliver’s director and head of schools.

Approximately 30 teachers around the nation will pilot the unit. They will be the lead instructors for professional development training for other educators who wish to implement the Medical Detectives unit when it officially rolls out for the 2013-14 school year.

Gulliver Academy Middle School in Coral Gables offers a project-based engineering program. The curriculum includes Automation and Robotics, Design and Modeling, Science of Technology, Magic of Electrons, Energy and the Environment, Green Architecture and more.